Monday, January 12, 2009

Now that my littlest is almost four months old, I've been working on some fun, grabby baby toys. This is a cute one that I'm calling "loop". I've sold a handful in the shop. They are super-easy to make, so I've decided to post a little tutorial so you can make them for the little one's in your life. Enjoy!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"LOOP" - A Baby Rattle Grab Toyby Amy Herbst

MATERIALS NEEDED:-3.25 mm crochet hook-Worsted weight yarn of your choice (here I've used Patons Classic Wool)-1 or 2 small jingle bells (they just need to be small enough to fit in the large tube)-Stuffing material

INSTRUCTIONS:- Starting with the first small outer ring, chain 6.- Slip stitch in the first chain you made to form a ring.Stuff the tube lightly as you work- Make 1 single crochet in each single crochet around until you have a little tube measuring 6 inches long.

-Bring the two ends of your 6" tube together to form a ring, stitch closed.Repeat above instructions to make a total of two small rings.

For the large inner ring:- Chain 12 (or 14, depending on your tension)--you want it to be nice and tight- Slip stitch in the first chain you made to form a ring.Stuff the tube firmly as you work, adding in a small jingle bell or two- Make 1 single crochet in each single crochet (changing colors as desired) until you have a tube measuring 10.5 inches long.

- Slide the two small rings onto the large tube.- Bring the ends of the large tube together to form a ring and stitch closed.

Thank you so much for sharing this pattern!I'm pregnant with boy/girl twins due in may and I just don't have it in me to knit clothes for them since I already have two small children and no time for myself! I've been looking for interesting toys to knit for them and this is by far the best that I've found. I LOVE IT!!!!Thanks again~!!!!!

this is really neat. with all the baby toys in the store made in china, i'm really glad you came up with something you can make yourself and not have to worry about the baby putting in their mouth. again thanks

Such a cute and great idea. Have so many little scraps of yarn and I HATE to throw anything away!!Just been invited to a baby shower so here's a nice decoration for the package. Also do lots of baby charity things so again a place for my scraps of yarn. Thanks so much for sharing and for my Craft page that sent me over. Gloria

Thank you so much! Recently put on bed-rest during my first pregnancy and wanted to be able to do something productive for the baby while I sit around. Making some of these will surely busy me for a day or so!

Thank you so much for posting the pattern! I'm teaching myself how to crochet, so easy projects like this are right up my alley. Thanks again for the fabulous idea! (Oh, and I've been putting a little cellophane in my ringsto make a little bit of that crinkly noise my baby loves.)

Hi from Denmark! What a nice blog you've got here! I was looking for some crochet baby toys on Google, and then I saw your LOOP Baby Toy. Thank you for sharing! I will go to my bench in the garden right away and start the good work! Have a nice day!-LisBeth.

I love this pattern! I just made one and put jingle bells in it, however, the sound was all muffled because of the batting. Does anybody have an idea how to get the bells to jingle or how to incorporate another noise-maker?

Hi, I personally don't mind the sound that the muffled jingle bells make. BUT you could definitely play around with different noise makers. One idea for a rattle insert is to take two plastic bottle caps and place beads, rice, etc inside to get the sound you want. Then tape the caps together. Have fun!!

Here's a silly tip that I use when I crochet the rings (and other things). I leave the tail of the yarn cut to the length that I want the unrolled ring to be (6 or 10.5 inches) that way i dont have to keep looking for a ruler.

@Anonymous who asked about the copyright. I am fine if you want to make and sell the finished product of the LOOP baby toy. I ask that you PLEASE credit "Herbst Handmade" for the creation of the pattern. Thanks!

Not only was it super cool to find this pattern exactly 20 minutes after deciding to make my grandson a rattle but to see you give permission to another crafter to sell it on Etsy (where you sell them) how generous is that? Maybe I'll make up a few for my craft sales too and of course you get the credit! It's a very clever idea.

this is just what i was looking for!! thanks for a gorgeous quick pattern!! i love to crochet and am driving my family crazy with making our soon to be born bubba boy all these different things! lol.. will be definatley making a heaps of these!! thanks heaps honey!! xoxoxo

Love this! Just finished my first one for my future baby cousin! It was so easy, i was able to do it in about an hour, while watching tv, with a 2 year old running around. Thank you for the fun pattern. I'm going to make another one tomorrow for my little one! Ü

I love love love the colors and style of this. Any baby who gets one of these is so lucky! I linked to it on my blog this morning, at http://www.mooglyblog.com/free-crochet-toys-for-babies-patterns/ :)Thanks for sharing your pattern!

such a cute pattern. I know you've sold it in your shop before. I love crocheting and crafting myself but I am not talented to ever come up with my own original pattern. Can i sell the finish product using your pattern ?